The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) was not only the Diamond Sponsor of the 3rd Annual World Medical Tourism and Global Health Congress, which ran from September 22-24, 2010 in Los Angeles, but also walked away from the convention with a Mission of Understanding with the Medical Tourism Association.
The Mission of Understanding (MoU) will see the Dubai Health Authority and the Medical Tourism Association both working towards the continued development and build up of the medical tourism sector in Dubai. This may include collaborating on the Dubai Health Authority’s efforts to improve upon its healthcare capabilities, regulations and policies.
The DHA considers private healthcare providers as major stakeholders in the country’s healthcare sector, and seeks to encourage the development of cutting edge healthcare facilities by the private sector. One way Dubai has done this is through projects such as the Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC), which was put into motion by the UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, as a dedicated location for medical providers to provide high quality, patient-centric care. The Dubai Healthcare City now has two hospitals, and more than 90 diagnostic laboratories and outpatient medical centers.
Dubai will host the regional Medical Tourism Congress in February 2011, which will be the first time it is ever held in the Middle East. At the conference in February, the DHA and private sector healthcare providers will showcase their medical centers of excellence in different fields such as surgery, diabetes management and rehabilitation facilities for the global medical tourism industry.
From looking at the patient base, the DHA has seen a trend over recent years showing increasing number of regional medical tourists, traveling to Dubai from other countries in the Middle East for medical treatment. The DHA is hoping that further efforts will increase Dubai’s standing as a medical tourism destination for a broader audience, drawing more international patients from around the world. However, they face stiff competition from countries like Singapore, India, Thailand and a number of South American states which are already well established within the international medical tourism industry.
The CEO of the Health Policy and Strategy Sector of the DHA, Laila Al Jassmi said that “The medical tourism industry generates over 30 billion dollars worth of revenue annually. It is a huge industry globally and Dubai already has many factors that work to its benefit. At the DHA, we are strengthening our policies, regulations and further developing our healthcare capabilities to strengthen the medical tourism sector.
In terms of the GCC region, we are already witnessing an increase in the number of patient base and now we are keen to provide the international patient will lucrative healthcare opportunities in Dubai. At the DHA, we consider the private sector to be a key stakeholder and thus both the public and the private health sector in Dubai will be a part of the medical tourism conference which takes place in 2011.”
Global Insurance